How Iowa State Can Beat Arizona in the Big 12 Tournament

The Iowa State Cyclones and Arizona Wildcats are facing off in the semifinals of the Big 12 tournament.

Mar 2, 2026; Tucson, Arizona, USA; Iowa State Cyclones forward Dominykas Pleta (21) tips the ball in during the second half of the game against the Arizona Wildcats at McKale Memorial Center. Mandatory Credit: Aryanna Frank-Imagn Images | Aryanna Frank-Imagn Images

Throughout the week at the 2026 Phillips 66 Big 12 Men’s Basketball Tournament, the Iowa State Cyclones have dominated opponents.

They have set records, stopped teams from scoring for long periods of time, and overall provided a perfect representation of TJ Otzelberger’s coaching style. But now comes their toughest test yet.

In the semifinals, Iowa State takes on the Arizona Wildcats, who are one of the nation’s best teams and a consensus No. 1 seed in the upcoming NCAA tournament. The Cyclones are in need of another win, but may fall flat.

So can Iowa State actually pull off the upset? It is certainly possible if they need to execute.

Execution is key to Iowa State beating Arizona

Feb 28, 2026; Ames, Iowa, USA; Iowa State Cyclones head coach T.J. Otzelberger watches his team play the Texas Tech Red Raiders during the first half at James H. Hilton Coliseum. | Reese Strickland-Imagn Images

These two teams matched up just 11 days prior to the Big 12 tournament meetup, where the Wildcats dominated at home. They won 73-57, finding success in the guard battle, and completely shut down Iowa State’s offense. But they may not do that again in the rematch.

There was one specific thing that simply did not work for the Cyclones against Arizona. And that was the fact that there was no offensive structure when things didn’t go their way.

All night, the Wildcats did a great job of defending the entire floor, but especially the perimeter, which forced Joshua Jefferson to get the ball inside.

He had a bad night in a game where he was all they had, which led to struggles for Iowa State offensively. Luckily, Tamin Lipsey and Jamarion Batemon both stepped up from 3-point land to keep the Cyclones competitive, but obviously, it wasn’t enough.

Counting Down the Hours. #Cyclones | #C5C pic.twitter.com/2AMRI9iYH2

— Iowa State Men’s Basketball (@CycloneMBB) March 13, 2026

The main way that Iowa State runs its offense is by giving either Jefferson or Lipsey the ball and allowing Killyan Toure, Blake Buchanan, and other role players to create plays for Momcilovic.

In the first game against Arizona, it didn’t happen, and that forced the Cyclones to rely elsewhere. Toure and Buchanan weren’t creating for Momcilovic, which made it impossible for the junior forward to get open to score. When that happens, they have to just rely on others to generate offense.

In the Big 12 tournament, Iowa State needs to absolutely make sure that they move the ball and allow their offense to flourish. If they are able to do that, everything opens up. It also allows star players, along with the supporting cast, to take advantage and play well against the Wildcats.

Iowa State certainly has a chance to take down Arizona and advance to the championship game, but it’s going to take a few players to step up in big moments.